Students Seized After Father Helped Them Raid Ancient Egyptian Museum

Three students and one of their dads have been seized by Egyptian police after they carried out a bungled heist at an archaeological museum packed with ancient artefacts.

The raid – like a scene from an Indiana Jones movie – saw two of the gang break into the Sohag University archaeological museum with a crowbar and stuff the treasures into a rucksack.

Then – say police – they climbed a fence and caught a taxi home after the third gang member drove away with the loot.

The father of one member of the gang – reported local media – had agreed to stash the 59 artefacts until they could sell them on the black market.

The haul from the raid – seen in police evidence photos – included ancient jade hugs, hair combs, small carvings and tablets.

But the plot fell apart after police scrolled through museum security CCTV footage and identified the students, two men and one girl who had been the getaway driver.

Photo shows the artefacts that were allegedly stolen from a museum in Sohag University, Egypt, undated photo.
(Egypt’s Ministry of Interior/Newsflash)

The students confessed to the raid after they were seized by police, according to a statement Newsflash obtained from the Interior Ministry in Egypt on 23rd October.

Local media reports claim that the group told authorities that they planned to sell the items as part of a get-rich-quick scheme.

The four suspects are currently being held in custody and will face charges, according to the statement.

A number of Egyptian provinces are said to be plagued by the sale of illegally looted artefacts, according to reports.

The unauthorised sale of antiquities is banned under Egyptian law.

All new historical finds on Egyptian soil are said to belong to the state by law and traffickers can face penalties of up to 25 years behind bars.


To find out more about the author, editor or agency that supplied this story – please click below.
Story By: Alice Amelia Thomas, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash

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